Sirius Retail Sales Questions Remain Unanswered
I had decided a week ago to begin weekly trips to the retailers to see if any new retail promotions might be in the works. When Jessica Reif Cohen of Merrill Lynch asked Mel Karmazin for a preview into retail, Mel answered that the company wanted to talk to the retailers before talking to Wall Street. What is a Sirius XM investor to do?
Well we do what we did years ago! We visit the stores, talk to the sales people and look at the inventories of product. We inquire about sales and marketing plans the reps may have divulged. Anything to feed our insatiable curiosities.
My trip began at Circuit City, where I found most Sirius XM products marked “clearance.” Sportster 5 home docking stations were sold out at the clearance price of $8.88. Stiletto 2 accessories were marked down as well, with display products being offered for sale. I just had to ask a salesman what the deal was! A nice young man began to explain to me that the companies were going to be merging soon. Not a good start.
I asked him what the point would be of buying a Sportster 5 model if I could no longer purchase the accessories for it. He replied that they were going to be replacing all of these older radio models with new ones before Christmas, and suggested that I just wait for the new radios to come out. Hmmm.
So off to Best Buy I went. Best Buy is operating as if there was no merger. I was very happy to see a large Sirius banner hung from the rafters. Best Buy had a full stock of radios and accessories, and the salesman there was much better trained and focused on attempting to sell me the products that were in stock based on my personal preferences. The only radio that was missing from the display was the Stiletto 100, the original and nearly outdated portable, so all is forgiven. Also of interest was that Best Buy had a display, literature and everything required to purchase and install Sirius Backseat TV. He claimed to have no knowledge of any new radios coming in the future. I could not figure out if was stating this out of a lack of knowledge, or a preference to make a sale in that moment. Which meant of course that I now needed more information.
So off to Radio Shack I went. My experience with Radio Shack is that they are always more than willing to help answer any question I may have and go to any lengths to get the right answer. Unfortunately that would not be the case this day, as I was met with a completely unknowledgable salesperson who said to me “I don’t know anything about it. Those are the radios we have and they’ve been there for “like” 3 months.” He then walked away as if he had no interest in working that day. Directly over the Sirius display, was a rebate offer that is running from August 8 to August 28 that again he left for me to figure out on my own.
I will continue my weekly trips and my weekly reports and invite anyone else to report their own findings in this thread at the SiriusBuzz forums.
Position: Long SIRI
No positions in BBY, RSH or CC, although I have held CC shares in the past.
“A nice young man began to explain to me that the companies were going to be merging soon. Not a good start.”
and…
“He then walked away as if he had no interest in working that day.”
Priceless. Absolutely priceless.
Is this article a joke? Do you really expect a low-level salesman to have some kind of inside info about new radios? I think you’d get along well with Hartleib.
It is amazing how little these retailers know about Satellite. It would seem that there should be some insentives to the kids who work the counters for Sirius-XM to get trained.
I’ll admit there are a few who know, but the vast majority don’t and the reasons are simple, turnover, Everyweek there is someone new.
Sirius-XM needs to enlist the current subscribers to help “Spread the word” I do my part every time in a best buy or circuit city, I always am explaining to the salesman the latest word on the merger or telling someone who is looking at the display rack my experiences with my portables and which one I think is best and why.
Not every subscriber is an expert, but every subscriber knows what they like about satellite radio. They typically know what stations they listen to. Whatever the experience is people will listen to make informed decisions. Sirius-XM should take advantage of this.
Finnaly work hard to get those in the stores trained. Heck, give those salesman free service for a month or two. Maybe after they sell 5 radios they get a free one. Heck better yet, make them part of the company, at stock at a buck fifty a share, give them stock! Maybe as an owner in the company they might feel part of the team!
I agree, When I was in high school I worked in a retail store. At that level you don’t hear, or care enough to ask about future products. What you need to do is call the store, speak to a manager and ask them when they will be getting the new sirius, xm, or sirius-xm radios in. Make up some BS about how you heard it’s supposed to be.
First he will say he doesn’t know but bla bla shipments come in every week.
Then you ask him if there is a way he can find out.
After that its up to the manager to push some buttons and see whats coming down the pipe. Chances are you wont find an answer until you get to corporate.
About two weeks out a companies district distribution manager will know whats going on.
P.S. I called Sirius tech support a week ago and the only thing he knew is that best of siri-xm and dual receiver discounts will be available in the fall. (I asked him if I got an XM receiver could I get the 6.99 dual receiver rate, and adding Xm to my current sub with a stilletto.)
you must really not know much about sat radio. There is no sportster5 home dock only a universal dock and I garuntee it is not on clearance. The new Sirius units comming out this fall will also use that home dock.
Brandon’s tirade last night on SirusBuzz Radio about the TOTAL lack of promotion for the NFL on Sirius was dead on.
I understand that Mel is still working out some details before airing a commercial about the merger…but the fact that for the last 3 years there has been ZERO exposure in retail stores or on TV about the NFL being on Sirius…is a FRIGGIN OUTRAGE.
Brandon is so right about the XM commercials for Baseball. I don’t even watch Baseball, but I can’t get Big Poppy’s voice out of my friggin head…”EBREY TEAM EBREY GAME!”
Now THAT is brand recognition. Sirius, pardon the pun has DROPPED THE BALL in regards to the NFL.
Where are the displays in Best Buy? Where are the ads on TV? The football season is about to start, and NOTHING. They could have nabbed Brett Favre for a funny commercial about switching teams. With Brett saying XM listeners don’t have to switch teams to listen to the NFL.
Or what about the newly acquired MAD DOG doing a commercial about the NFL??? Then you’d kill TWO birds with one stone, promoting the NFL AND the MAD DOG show.
WHATEVER…the point is…I have enormous faith in the future of Sirius. But it’s things like this that drive me nuts. Don’t the shareholders have ENOUGH stress coming in the forms of shorts, bashers, Cramer and Goldman Sachs….without having stress coming from inhouse?
Lets go Mel! I know you said after Labor Day…but there are still some things that could be done NOW.
Still long and strong. Just frustrated.
satman…..
Circuit City has had SDARS items on clearance for quite some time now at some great price points. I have seen this myself.
The sportster 5 home dock does indeed use the universal kit and is universal.
Traditionally Sirius has been slightly better at this than XM due to the displays at Radio Shack. I wonder if we will see the XM Phoenix at Radio Shack.
But I have still got to say that both companies have always had terrible marketing.
Perhaps it’s time to get Howard Stern on the road again with media shows like he did during his first year. It brought a lot of interest to satrad and now that it is one company it should be even more exciting assuming that Stern will be available at no extra charge on BOTH XM and Sirius. Certainly at $100++ million a year there must be a clause in his contract that he must put on these shows when requested by management.
Paul in FL: He wont be available for no extra charge. For XM listeners to get him, they will have to pay an additional $4 per month.
Knowing what is going on in retail is not nearly as interesting as knowing what is going on at the OEMs… What are THEIR plans?
More than anything the lack of promotion of Howard Stern by himself has been the biggest disappointment. If he were to get just 10% more of his audience, it would be what puts them over the top and he should have struck while the iron was hot.
Remember, Sirius even fumbled in his 1st year with not having enough tuners in the stores at X-MAS time.
I think the lack of promotion of the NFL the past 2 years has been because of cost cutting, not believing that they would get the return with the merger being up in the air & the confusion it brought.
My opinion is that they want a combined Sirius/XM message as soon as possible & by just promoting Sirius with NFL, your not doing that.
This is going to be a 4th quarter November/December story with the “best of” in place and Ala-cart radios hitting the stores in November.